1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a motorcycle and rear fender therefor, in which a rear fender is supported on a frame covering a rear wheel from above, and a lamp body is disposed on a widened portion of the rear fender. More particularly, the present invention relates to an improvement in a rear fender structure, in a rear fender of a type formed with a substantially U-shaped cross section, including a pair of side plates arranged on opposite sides of the rear wheel, a bight portion interconnecting upper edges of the side plates, and an open lower portion. Each side plate is provided with a widened portion at the rear end of the rear fender, and each of the side plates has a turn indicator lamp mounted to a support structure and extending outwardly from the widened portion thereof.
2. Description of the Background Art
A motorcycle in which a rear fender, having a widened portion at a rear end thereof, is supported on a support frame covering a rear wheel from above, and which includes a lamp body disposed on the widened portion is known from, for example, Japanese Laid-open Patent No. 2003-89375.
In the rear fender disclosed in this reference, both left and right sides of the rear fender are bolted to the body frame of the motorcycle. In the design of Japanese Laid-open Patent No. 2003-89375, the rear end of the rear fender is spaced apart at an extended distance from the connection point where the rear fender is mounted to the vehicle frame. Moreover, in this known design, the lamp body is secured to the rear fender, placing stress thereon. Therefore, it is required that the rigidity of the rear end of the rear fork be enhanced.
In the above-described conventional art, in order to strengthen the fender, a jagged portion is formed on the rear end of the rear fender by press molding an iron plate, to provide the rigidity on the rear fender itself. In this case, when the rear fender is enlarged, a mold for press molding the rear fender is also enlarged. The mold for forming the jagged portion also becomes complicated in terms of achieving rigidity.
In addition, the weight of the rear fender is increased in the known fender design, because the rear fender disclosed is large and covers even the rear-most portions of the rear wheel, and further because the lamp body is mounted to the rear fender. Therefore, a need exists for a rear fender that is easily assembled to the vehicle body, despite the size and weight of the rear fender.